


Ice-Cream And Escapees

by MaliceManaged



Series: One Wish Away [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Blackmail, Fluff, Gen, Loki Does What He Wants, Much To Thor's Dismay, helpful loki
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-23
Updated: 2016-12-23
Packaged: 2018-09-11 11:53:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8978578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaliceManaged/pseuds/MaliceManaged
Summary: In which Loki finds new reasons to like his small friend.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Been working on this on and off for a while. So many more ideas with these two crazy kids, I don't even know what I'm going to do with myself anymore.

    The crystal-flower pin kept a pair of braids along her brown hair secured at the back of her head along with another, less extravagant yellow star-shaped one, and he couldn’t help but be pleased. He had figured by now she would’ve forgotten about it, cast it aside like any childish thing one outgrows; it had, after all, been five years since he’d given it to her. Loki watched as Madeline ran across the playground playing tag with a handful of other children her age, the knees of her jeans scuffed and dirty from a fair few tumbles that she quickly brushed off to keep running, the sheer unadulterated glee never leaving her face.

 

    He hadn’t even been looking for her, just ended up there after more-or-less fleeing Asgard again. It was quite simply for the best to be as far away as possible whenever Thor figured out what he’d done. Now that he was there, though, he couldn’t seem to leave. And so he stood there watching the child he was inexplicably drawn to be a child with a small smile on his face.

 

    He’d been about to walk away when Madeline looked in his direction, grinned widely and tore off running to him, flinging her arms around his waist the moment she was close enough to. “You came back!” She beamed happily as she looked up to his quite startled face.

 

    “So I did,” Loki replied casually as he quickly recovered. He stepped back and raised a hand to touch the amaranth pin lightly. “I didn’t expect you to wear this so openly; how did you explain its existence to your parents?”

 

    Madeline shrugged. “Mom just thought she or dad had gotten it for me and dad doesn’t really keep track of these things; I have a lot of stuff for my hair.”

 

    Loki huffed amusedly. “I see.”

 

    “You’re not supposed to be here, are you?” Madeline asked, tilting her head to the side a bit.

 

    “What makes you think that?” Loki asked back curiously.

 

    “You’re hiding in the trees?” Madeline pointed out with a raised eyebrow, and damned if she didn’t look every bit her mother’s daughter.

 

    Loki chuckled lightly. “Fair enough. No; I’m not,” He confessed. “Are you going to tell on me?”

 

    Madeline tried and failed to completely suppress a smile. “Maybe...” She replied.

 

    “Name a price for your silence,” Loki bargained, amused by her apparent mischievousness.

 

    Madeline gave it some thought. “I could go for ice-cream,” She replied innocently.

 

    “Done,” Loki agreed, “Though I’m sure someone will miss you?”

 

    Madeline rolled her eyes. “It’s just my neighbour; I sneak away from her _all the time,”_ She dismissed, “As long as keep my phone with me, I’m back before mom or dad get home from work, and don’t tell her mom that she lost me; she won’t say anything.”

 

    “You’re quite the devious little creature, aren’t you?” Loki said approvingly. He held out his hand. “Shall we?”

 

    Madeline grinned and took his hand, pulling him along to her favourite ice-cream shop; once there, she asked for the biggest bowl they sold. They sat at the back of the shop to enjoy their ice-cream and observe the other people there, which Loki learned was Madeline’s favourite part of going in there. Occasionally she turned to him and asked him random questions about Asgard, making a game of trying to find out why he’d left without actually asking him outright. Occasionally, he actually told her the truth.

 

    By the time Madeline announced that she should go, he had been much closer to losing than he’d have expected, but he couldn’t deny it had been fun to get there; the girl had a very sharp mind. He took her back to the playground and she gave him her star pin and made him promise to come back to visit sometime before rushing off to find her would-be caretaker so they could go back to her house, leaving Loki to face his own impending return home. He really hoped that the hours he’d spent away had been enough so that Thor wouldn’t outright murder him.

 

 

    Loki stood leaning on the railing of his balcony, turning the pin in his fingers slowly, watching the light behind him reflecting off the enamel lost in thought. Thor had been a lot less angry than he thought he’d be, all things considered, though the cuff on his left wrist that cut him off from his seidr was well within his expectations. He didn’t even blame him, honestly; in hindsight, he _had_ been a _bit_ out of line. Still, he hoped the punishment wouldn’t last _too_ long; he did get bored...

 

    He also had a promise to keep. Preferably in less than five years; he didn’t think Madeline would be too happy with that.

 

    “Didn’t you once accuse me of sentimentality as though it were the worst quality one could possess?” Thor asked from behind him at the balcony’s entrance.

 

    “I seem to recall we were supposedly fighting at the time,” Loki replied, standing up straight and turning to face him, “You have to admit the timing could have been better.”

 

    Thor huffed a laugh. “Well, you were always so good at multitasking,” He said with a one-shouldered shrug.

 

    “ _One_ of us had to be,” Loki fired back immediately, earning a laugh.

 

    “Where did you go today?” Thor asked before the conversation could be completely derailed, “Who grips your mind so, that you didn’t hear my approach?”

 

    “You’re so sure I didn’t?” Loki asked back. Thor gave him a look and he rolled his eyes. “What makes you think I’d tell you?”

 

    “I don’t; I just thought I’d try regardless,” Thor replied. “Even _you_ tell the truth sometimes,” He added with a smirk.

 

    “As if _you’d_ know,” Loki said with an answering smirk. “If you must know; I found a very interesting little mortal,” He commented offhandedly.

 

    “‘Little’ seems to be right, if that trinket is anything to go by,” Thor observed then narrowed his eyes slightly in suspicion, “You haven’t fathered any children on Midgard of late, have you?”

 

    Loki rolled his eyes and heaved an exaggerated sigh. “No, brother; I haven’t,” He replied, “Do you honestly think I would leave them there if I had?”

 

    “Considering you told no one of your _other_ ones...” Thor said.

 

    “Yes, and we all know what happened when they were found; so all things considered, I think I made the right call,” Loki replied pointedly.

 

    Thor winced slightly at the reminder. He never had agreed with the decision, given how much it hurt his brother, but he hadn’t thought to speak out against it at the time. “Alright; so, not your child,” He began, eager to move past that, “Whose, then?”

 

    Loki hesitated. “I don’t think you’ll approve of the answer,” He finally said.

 

    “Since when do you care what I approve of?” Thor asked.

 

    “I always cared; you just stopped seeing it,” Loki replied. Thor had the decency to look chagrined; Loki sighed and leaned onto the railing behind him, looking down at the pin in his hand. “Her name is Madeline,” He said at length, “Madeline Foster-Goddard.”

 

    Thor frowned. “... I see,” He said, “And does her mother know?”

 

    “Of course not,” Loki replied. “And it wasn’t intentional; I was simply... drawn to her. Luckily.”

 

    “What do you mean?” Thor asked, brows furrowed with interest.

 

    “She was being targeted by imps; I got rid of them,” Loki replied.  Thor gave him a rather incredulous look. “What? Do you really think I’d leave a child to be devoured by demons simply because her mother hates me?” Loki asked indignantly, “I’m not that petty.”

 

    Thor raised his hands in surrender. “I know you’re not, but surely a spell of protection would have sufficed?”

 

    “I did give her one, but why stop there? It’s not as though I had anything better to do,” Loki replied with a shrug, “Besides, you haven’t seen her; she would have had you wrapped around her finger in no time even then.”

 

    “‘Then’? This was not today?” Thor asked. Loki’s eyes widened slightly, looking very much caught, and Thor narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “Loki; how long have been visiting this girl?”

 

    “Only twice; five years ago and today,” Loki replied quickly.

 

    Thor shook his head with a sigh. “Why do you do these things to yourself, brother? You must know this won’t end well,” He asked tiredly.

 

    “Few things do; why not enjoy the ride regardless?” Loki replied.

 

    Thor huffed a laugh. “You realize that type of thinking is one reason people are so wary of you, don’t you?” Loki’s answering grin told Thor all he needed to know. “Why did it have to be Jane’s child, of all people?” He asked a little helplessly.

 

    “I have no idea,” Loki replied. He looked down at the pin thoughtfully. “But I intend to find out.”

 

 

    It was another two weeks before Loki could return to the Realm of Mortals, though he had hardly been idle in that time; Thor had seen to that. As before, he seemed to instinctively know where Madeline was. A quick concealment spell (he _highly_ doubted the humans would take too well to see him of all people on the grounds of a middle school), and he approached the girl in a more-or-less secluded corner.

 

    “I believe I have something of yours,” Loki said by way of introduction. Madeline started at his voice and hastily wiped her eyes before looking up at him, though that did nothing to conceal the fact that she had been crying.

 

    The cut on her lower lip didn’t help much either.

 

    Loki frowned and closed the rest of the distance between them, kneeling down to her level and taking her chin in his hand. “What happened? Who did this?”

 

    Madeline sucked her bottom lip into her mouth, grimacing slightly at the metallic taste, and looked away. “Just some boys; it doesn’t matter,” She mumbled.

 

    “Yes; this is clearly perfectly acceptable social behaviour,” Loki said sarcastically. He looked at her more closely. “This isn’t the first time, is it?” Madeline shook her head. “I assume you’ve told someone.”

 

    “Like _that_ ever does anything,” Madeline scoffed. “They’ll get bored eventually and move on to someone else. It’s what they did before.”

 

    Loki thought for a moment then stood and held out his hand to Madeline, who looked up at him confusedly. “How would you like me to help you make them... _move on_ sooner rather than later?” He asked with a mischievous smirk.

 

    Madeline gave it some thought and was about to take his hand but paused and narrowed her eyes at him, remembering Darcy’s warning that he himself had confirmed to be true. “What do you want in return?”

 

    Loki chuckled quietly, pleased she remembered that; it would be no easy feat to take advantage of her, that was evident. He thought for a moment. “A tear,” He replied then indicated to her face, “That one there, to be precise.”

 

    “O... kay...” Madeline said, very puzzled, “Deal.”

 

    Loki helped her up then collected his price with one finger, depositing it into a small vial he conjured in his other hand. “My thanks,” He said, stoppering the vial and putting it away in his coat. “Shall we then?”

 

    “What are you going to do?” Madeline asked.

 

    Loki only grinned.


End file.
